The Centre has been funded by DHS to undertake the 2014 Residential Care Workforce Project.
The objectives of the project are to:
- Profile the residential care workforce
- Identify the skills gap of Residential Care Workers
- Develop recruitment and retention strategies
- Develop training strategy and minimum qualifications recommendations
This project has 3 components as follows:
- Workforce Qualifications and Skills;
- Voice of Young People; and
- Review of Position Description Documents.
These areas arose from the discussions at the Residential Care forum held in September 2014.
The Census of the Residential Care Workforce is beginning now. This follows on from the very successful and informative Victorian Residential Care Workforce Census 2012.
As in 2012, the aim of the residential Care Census 2014 is to take a point in time snapshot of the workforce undertaking residential care.
The data collected will inform future planning by providing an accurate profile of the residential care workforce, and plot changes since 2012. It will help to identify the existing gaps in skills and qualifications and support Learning & Development Strategy to improve outcomes for residential care workers.
The Census 2014 will explore 3 key areas in residential care:
- Workforce demographics
- Workforce qualifications
- Staff retention
Census week is December 15-19, 2014.
Please note, that this is the week you will refer to when giving us the data about your Residential Care Workforce.
However, we understand the pressure on agencies at this time of year in particular, and so, we ask that you complete your census form any time between Dec 15 2014 and end January, 2015 (with reference to the week of Dec 15-19).
Please be assured that all data collected will remain confidential and anonymous to the Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare. Only aggregate and Division level data will be released in report form.
Outcomes for your organisation
All organisations who participate in this Census will receive:
- The Victorian Residential Care Workforce Census at a Glance, 2014 ‘brochure” – see attached pdf of 2012 Brochure
- If requested, each participating organisation can receive a confidential individual profile for benchmarking purposes. This will be forwarded confidentially, and only, to the organisational CEO.
Completing the Online Census Form
The Residential Care Census questionnaire is an online form. It is designed to be completed by a human resource manager, unit manager(s) or person(s) of equivalent status who have access to information about staff employed by your organisation in each DHS Area in which you provide residential care.
If your organisation provides residential care in more than one DHS Area (sub-division) then we ask that you forward the link to the correct persons to complete a separate form for each Area (Sub-division) in which your organisation operates.
This will be the most efficient way to ensure good quality data and ease of completion. The time needed to complete this survey will vary depending on the size of your organisation and the human resource systems you have in place.
The Census questionnaire link will be forwarded to you to forward to the correct personnel on December 15.
In addition, we will send hard copies of the questionnaire to assist with collating the data before it is entered in to the online form.
Support for Completing the Census
The Centre for Excellence Project staff is very happy to provide any support or answer any queries at any time.
Please do not hesitate to contact Amanda Stevenson; Manager, Research and Social Policy.
The Residential Care Workforce Census is a very important sector tool for development and support of the Residential Care Workforce. Full participation by all agencies delivering Residential Care is critical. We would therefore greatly appreciate your agency’s participation and support and would be grateful if you would forward the survey link and encourage your human resource manager and residential care staff to support this project.
